Driver charged with DUI after vehicle hits Worcester cruiser

WORCESTER — A police cruiser responding to a report Tuesday of a vehicle going the wrong way down a one-way street was struck by the vehicle, and the driver was later arrested on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

Philip Turner, 65, of 52 Country Club Blvd. was taken by ambulance to a local hospital for observation and treatment after the accident near 529 Lincoln St. The officers, who had been responding to an 11:40 a.m. report of an erratic driver, were not injured.

Police said Mr. Turner's vehicle slammed into one of two cruisers as they arrived.

Mr. Turner was arrested at the hospital and taken to the Police Department, where he was booked on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol, driving under the influence of drugs and driving negligently so as to endanger.

The officers said Mr. Turner was in a very impaired state. He was unsteady on his feet and slurred his speech, according to a Police Department news release.

Mr. Turner is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday in Central District Court.